Introduction to Foraging for Wild Edible Mushrooms

This immersive wilderness workshop brings you into the forest with a single delicious goal in mind: teaching you how to find, safely identify, and sustainably harvest wild edible mushrooms! Popular outdoor educator and avid forager Stephan Lukacic takes you deep into science, ecology, and methodology of modern mushroom hunting. 

 *Check out Steve’s Instagram, where you can read articles he’s written about foraging and mushroom hunting for Outdoor Canada and other publications: https://www.instagram.com/stevie_funfur/ 

There are thousands of mushroom species in eastern North America. Some have strange alien-looking shapes that don’t resemble the mushrooms you find in the grocery store at all. Some look like heads of cauliflower, some like beautiful corals you’d find under the sea, others like soccer balls, bird’s feathers, or dangling icicles that hang from tree trunks, dead stumps and logs, or that burst up from the forest floor through leaves and dirt.

Wild mushrooms have curious folk names like “Dead Man’s Fingers”, “Shaggy Mane”, “Witch’s Butter”, and “Bear’s Head Tooth”; but their scientific names are far more accurate and important. Some turn colours when they’re cut or bruised, others smell like common fruits, taste acrid or bitter, or even glow in the dark at night. Many wild mushrooms are delicious; others are toxic. Most are unpalatable, flavourless, or too tough to eat. A few are even deadly. But how do you know which is which?

This short, intensive “course” is designed to demystify wild mushrooms, giving you a solid foundation on which to build future foraging skills. The workshop begins with an engaging 90 min seminar that takes place in a beautiful outdoor classroom. You will receive a 6-page handout covering all the basics of mushroom hunting methodology, and read and discuss its contents thoroughly. Then you’ll do a deep dive right into the forest—putting the knowledge you’ve acquired directly into practice by identifying any wild mushrooms the group encounters in their natural habitat. There’s always tonnes of time for questions and conversation, and usually some cool people and a bunch of laughs!

Mushroom hunting is a fascinating, gratifying, and often misunderstood outdoor activity. Come learn the basics of foraging for these fungal wonders of nature, learn tricks of the forager’s trade, and have a blast doing it!

*Note: You will not be foraging for wild mushrooms to take home. This workshop focuses on teaching you how to find and identify wild edible mushrooms. This is not a standard (boring!) foraging walk where a guide identifies mushrooms for you, which you then take home—having learned very little about how and why those mushrooms are safe to eat, where they like to grow, or how to properly harvest them! 

**What to bring: Good hiking shoes, hat, sweater, waterproof jacket, insect repellent and/or bug jacket, camera (cell phone), a pen or pencil, and readiness for outdoor adventures! Best suited to adults and older children. Includes walking & hiking—often off-trail and on uneven ground.

Duration: Approx. 3 hours

Seasons: June – October

Dates:  Saturdays at 1:30 pm

** PRE REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Rates:  $60 per person 

Location:  Haliburton Highlands – Exact address of workshop will be forwarded to students upon registration.

**This package can be customized according to your needs.

Cancellation Policy:  You must cancel more than 48 hours before the workshop start time in order to reschedule or receive a refund.

Common Medicinal Mushrooms of Ontario

Popular foraging and outdoor educator Stephan Lukacic (@stevie_funfur on Instagram) takes you deep into the science, tradition, and practical use of the many medicinal mushrooms commonly found in our Ontario forests!

Turkey Tail
Reishi (Ganoderma sp.)
Chaga
Hen of the Woods (Maitake)
Hericiums (Lion’s Mane, Coral & Bear’s Head Tooth)
Oyster Mushrooms

This outdoors wellness workshop consists of an hour+ long seminar discussing the medicinal uses and health benefits of these powerful mushrooms, and the many beneficial compounds they contain. Steve will teach you how to accurately identify them and demonstrate safe and sustainable harvesting techniques. You’ll learn best practices for preservation and preparation, how they’re used in a variety of ways, and much, much more! There’s always time for questions and conversation, and usually some cool people and a bunch of laughs!

*Taking Steve’s Introduction to Wild Edible Mushrooms workshop before attending the medicinal mushroom workshop is strongly recommended! (Although not required).

**What to bring: Good hiking shoes, hat, sweater, waterproof jacket, insect repellent and/or bug jacket, camera (cell phone), a pen or pencil, and readiness for outdoor adventures! Best suited to adults and older children. Includes walking & hiking—often off-trail and on uneven ground.

Duration: Approx. 2.5 hours – Rain or shine!

Dates:  Sundays – July 7, August 4, September 1 and Oct 6 – 1:30 pm

**PRE REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Rates:  $60 per person (minimum group size 6)

Location:  Haliburton Highlands – Exact address of workshop will be forwarded to students upon registration.

**This package can be customized according to your needs.

Cancellation Policy:  You must cancel more than 48 hours before the workshop start time in order to reschedule or receive a refund.